Pharmaceutical representative vs associate sales representative

The differences between pharmaceutical representatives and associate sales representatives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a pharmaceutical representative, becoming an associate sales representative takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a pharmaceutical representative has an average salary of $66,166, which is higher than the $51,007 average annual salary of an associate sales representative.

The top three skills for a pharmaceutical representative include pharmaceutical products, territory management and medical professionals. The most important skills for an associate sales representative are work ethic, patients, and product knowledge.

Pharmaceutical representative vs associate sales representative overview

	Pharmaceutical Representative	Associate Sales Representative
Yearly salary	$66,166	$51,007
Hourly rate	$31.81	$24.52
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	51,956	333,049
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 80%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	4

Pharmaceutical representative vs associate sales representative salary

Pharmaceutical representatives and associate sales representatives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Pharmaceutical Representative	Associate Sales Representative
Average salary	$66,166	$51,007
Salary range	Between $42,000 And $103,000	Between $37,000 And $68,000
Highest paying City	-	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	-	Massachusetts
Best paying company	-	Verint
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between pharmaceutical representative and associate sales representative education

There are a few differences between a pharmaceutical representative and an associate sales representative in terms of educational background:

	Pharmaceutical Representative	Associate Sales Representative
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 80%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	SUNY College of Technology at Alfred

Pharmaceutical representative vs associate sales representative demographics

Here are the differences between pharmaceutical representatives' and associate sales representatives' demographics:

	Pharmaceutical Representative	Associate Sales Representative
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 44.3% Female, 55.7%	Male, 50.8% Female, 49.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 72.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between pharmaceutical representative and associate sales representative duties and responsibilities

Pharmaceutical representative example responsibilities.

Manage and promote cardiovascular and respiratory products to local cardiologist, endocrinologists & allergists.
Manage Santa Rosa/San Francisco territories, marketing and selling respiratory, urology, cardiology to pharmacies and primary care physicians.
Collaborate with institution, cardiology, and diabetes specialists to increase penetration and productivity in hospital and endocrinology.
Complete extensive training in disease states such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, allergy, neurology and pain management.
Promote pharmaceuticals in the anti-microbial, neurology and gastroenterology markets.
Conduct discussions for a new drug for the treatment of hypertension.

Associate sales representative example responsibilities.

Manage organization website and Facebook page; writing articles for websites and newsletters.
Perform inside sales, including telemarketing, prospecting, account penetration and product application, consulting and delivery of customer service.
Learned how to ask proper questions and communicate MetLife's product differentiators against competition

Pharmaceutical representative vs associate sales representative skills

Common pharmaceutical representative skills

Pharmaceutical Products, 17%
Territory Management, 13%
Medical Professionals, 7%
Market Share Growth, 6%
Neurology, 5%
Sales Growth, 5%

Common associate sales representative skills

Work Ethic, 16%
Patients, 13%
Product Knowledge, 12%
Excellent Interpersonal, 7%
Excellent Organizational, 4%
Sales Techniques, 4%

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Pharmaceutical Representative
Pharmaceutical Representative vs Associate Sales Representative

Updated January 8, 2025

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